THUNDER BAY -- A member of the clergy in Thunder Bay who was the victim of a racist joke at the hands of some teens has received widespread support in the community since she went public about the incident.
She also hopes the community can learn from it.
Reverend Marlene Britton-Walfall, the minister at Knox United Church on Shuniah Street, wrote a letter to the editor about her experience at a local coffee shop last month.
Britton-Walfall was born in Jamaica and moved to Thunder Bay in February 2016 to serve the Knox congregation after ministering previously in Alberta.
Her letter detailed what happened as she walked past some older boys outside Tim Horton's on River Street. When one of the youths told a joke referencing "black people," she said, her initial reaction was a physical one.
In an interview with tbnewswatch.com, she recalled how she turned to look at them, then immediately looked away. "I kind of froze." Britton-Walfall said she was in a state of "I don't know how to respond. What do I do here? Do I speak?"
She said being at a loss for words was an unusual response for her, as it would be for anyone who is accustomed to speaking a lot.
At the same time, she recognized an element of fear. "Suppose I respond and there is a physical confrontation. I'm by myself, and I'm a woman, an older woman, a black woman, and that would not go well."
In the moment, Britton-Walfall decided to keep walking without looking back again, but heard the youths laughing as she continued into the restaurant.
Inside, she recounted the incident to a group of women she was meeting for coffee. That started a discussion about what might cause young people "to be thinking like that today...whether it is their exposure to international trends and events at the swipe of a finger, or the role of families," she said.
According to Britton-Walfall, the women also speculated on the impact that Donald Trump's public statements might be having "on the ease with which some of these comments flow."
Two of her companions later walked her back to her vehicle, but the youths had left by that point.
Since the publication of her letter, Britton-Walfall has heard from many people expressing concern as well as surprise that this would happen in Thunder Bay.
"But I also want to say that I was caught by surprise, because I have not experienced anything like that here in the city. It was really a curveball kind of thing."
Britton-Walfall said suggestions for followup that she has received include arranging for a discussion in local schools.
Other people have told her that until now they haven't given much thought to what their friends who are members of visible minorities might experience as they go about their daily business.
Amina Abu-Bakare, chair of Thunder Bay's Anti-Racism and Respect Advisory Committee, was not as surprised as others were when she heard what happened to Britton-Walfall.
"Racism in Thunder Bay is something that a lot of minorities encounter. I recently encountered it two days ago. It's sad that youth are getting involved," she said.
Abu-Bakare said "people are not born to be racist," and she believes most young people are learning it at home.
She's glad, she said, that Britton-Walfall decided to put it out there, "so that people will know what we are dealing with."
